Research projects

This study aims to examine the extent to which COVID-19 has led to changes in the total number and composition of students enrolled in K-12 public schools in Michigan. The study team will use student-level data to better understand which specific types of students did not enroll or return in the fall of 2020. For instance, whether re-enrollment patterns were different by prior year achievement, attendance, economically disadvantaged status, race, and district and neighborhood characteristics. Separately, the research team will complement the Michigan data with nationally-representative data...

The Michigan Department of Education is using the federal Comprehensive Literacy State Development grant to support literacy development in five districts in the state. Over the course of the five-year, $16 million grant, districts and statewide partners will work to advance literacy skills for children from birth through grade 12. The five districts awarded funding are: Benton Harbor Area Schools  Detroit Public Schools Community District  Flint Community Schools  Muskegon Heights Public School Academy System  Pontiac School District The goal of the grant funding is to...

Literacy knowledge and skills developed in the early elementary grades predict long-term literacy achievement, on-time graduation, and later-life outcomes. In recognizing the critical importance of establishing early literacy skills, there has been substantial instructional and policy attention given to improving rates of reading proficiency in the elementary grades. In 2016, based on the recommendation of the Michigan Third Grade Reading Workgroup, the Michigan legislature passed the Read by Grade Three Law (RBG3), which requires schools to identify learners who are struggling with reading...

Virtual education is touted as a promoter of both quality and access for students across the country. Several states require that students enroll in at least one online course before they graduate, and many states have recently passed legislation encouraging the use of online learning. Yet despite the burgeoning popularity of virtual schools, there remains a stark lack of evidence that these methods actually improve educational opportunity. Our project will fill this gap by exploring how access to the online sector affects students’ academic performance, as well as the effect of various...